Weather and Perspective
Yesterday it was over 70° F, I went on a trail run with a friend and thoroughly sunburnt my face. This morning I woke up to 25°F, snow, and spent half an hour chipping away and a sheet of ice on my windshield. Now I realize most people don’t live in places with weather as bi-polar as I do (ah, good ol Colorado), but it got me thinking about two things.
The first is simply how quickly and easily things can change. Clearly the weather and the environment but also circumstances can shift with your health, career, home, etc. Relationships develop or dissolve. Emotions are always on the flux; you can have a great mood one day and wake up on the wrong side of the bed the next. Maybe you’re having a good day but then you spill your coffee on yourself and all of a sudden you’re grumpy. Which leads me to my second thought about how often people let external circumstances ruin their day. After a snowstorm, you’ll hear so many “ew, this weather, it’s miserable” and “ugh I wish it was summer already.” You have the choice to let something affect you or not. Sure, you might have been late to work because you snoozed your alarm one too many times, had to scrape ice off your car, and then traffic was terrible…or you can look for the positives, like how beautiful the snow looks, how lucky we are to have different seasons, how icy roads can be a great reminder to slow down (you get the choice to either enjoy driving slowly and jam out to some music or let it frustrate and annoy you). We’re in such a rush in so many areas of our lives. Sometimes paying attention to the small things, like the change in weather, can teach you a lesson or two. Mine from today (feel free to take them with you too or leave it!) are:
Enjoy your day, no matter what the weather is like, you never know when things will change.
Choose to be present and positive, live in the moments and seek the good things in life.
Loving yourself and your life is entirely up to you and the choices you make (as challenging as that might be sometimes).
Personally, I’d rather appreciate everything and live a full life than focus on the negatives. What will you do today to shift your thinking and improve your life?